May 8, 2008

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EASTCONN Tech Council Meeting Minutes from May 8, 2008

Certification and other concerns as Tech Staff

  • What does highly qualified status mean to tech staff since there is no certification for technology?
  • What else is going to fall under the highly qualified status?

Next Year's Plans and Topics

The group liked having 5 sessions on Thursdays, 3:30-5:30 at Windham Mills. They talked about having an end-of-year social at the Main Street Brew Pub. They discussed the following as possible topics for next year:
  • How do people integrate technology activities into curriculum areas?
  • Special Tech focus session for "computer teachers" to discuss curriculum strategies and to share lessons and resources.
  • Are students getting keyboarding skills? At what grade?
  • More special guests such as Kathy Schrock would be great. Other ideas: guest through web conference, grant awardees, MIT multimedia lab, etc. No one was interested in "vendor" information unless presented by a tech council member. (No Sales)
  • Are we preparing students for colleges and work force? We need to hear from Higher Ed. and futurists.
  • Filtering from the state does not meet districts' needs, especially customization. A conversation around Internet filtering issues and concerns is essential, especially with the new changes at CEN. Options: buy own filter (with or without state filter), proxy server by building, etc. Related are applications such as Italic, Vision, and Synchroneyes that allow staff to see the students' computers.
  • A presentation from a school tech staff (not vendor) about thin clients, Linux, or other ways to save money on software and hardware.
  • Shared Best Practice: Member volunteers to share about a tech tool for 15 minutes each council meeting and it's educational application.
  • We should have an end of year social at the Main Street.

Student and Teacher Tech Assessments

  • Are any districts assessing teachers?
  • How many districts are assessing students? at what grade levels? Most tech/computer teachers use authentic activities in their classes, but true integration with the classroom teachers is difficult due to logistics such as the specials meet for one quarter, students come from different classes. Some teacher enjoy integrating technology while others might avoid it. Assessment issues differ at the levels such as primary, intermediate, middle and high school levels.
  • Technology curriculum keeps moving down grade levels as software becomes more sophisticated and users develop more expertise.
  • One issue is some schools don't have enough computers for teachers and students. How can we expect competence?
  • New teachers do not necessarily have experiences integrating technology during their teacher ed program.
  • We need to keep assessment to using technology at a higher level, not just using Word and Excel.
  • Assured Experiences are Connecticut's new term for technology experiences. Where can we find examples?

Links Shared

  • FreeRice is a site for vocabulary development for middle school through adult learners. For each word you get right, FreeRice donates 20 grains of rice through the UN World Food Program to end world hunger.
  • Professor's last lecture Carnegie Mellon professor Randy Pausch expects to die from cancer in a couple of weeks, so he delivered a hopeful last lecture on his life's lessons.